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The Trade

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Basic summary: I think we overpaid, unless it comes out that the Pirates are picking up half of Wilson’s 2010 salary or something. I liked Snell as a good buy-low candidate, but I’m not sure this is buying low. We gave up a lot for two guys with a lot of question marks.

Long summary, reposted from FanGraphs:

Itâ€™s no secret that Iâ€™m both a Mariner fan and an Ian Snell fan, as Iâ€™ve been lobbying for the Mâ€™s to acquire the guy from Pittsburgh for the last two months. I laid my reasons for liking Snell at the time, and his Triple-A performance hasnâ€™t lessened my enthusiasm.

So, when the Mariners actually go out and trade for Snell, you would think Iâ€™d be a happy man. However, my first reaction when I heard about the deal that sent Jeff Clement, Ronny Cedeno, Brett Lorin, Aaron Pribanic, and Nathan Adcock to Pittsburgh for Snell and Jack Wilson was â€œyuckâ€.

Letâ€™s start with what the Mariners are getting. Wilson is a really good defensive shortstop who can hit well enough to justify his place in the line-up. Despite a lack of power and an aggressive approach at the plate, heâ€™s still been a +1.5 to +2.5 win player for most of his career. Heâ€™s essentially a league average shortstop, and at $7.25 million in salary for 2009 with a team option at $8.4 million for 2010, heâ€™s not overly expensive for what he is. Heâ€™s a solid role player who does enough things well to earn his contract and wonâ€™t hurt the team heâ€™s playing for.

But heâ€™s also 31 years old, and while heâ€™s not overly expensive, heâ€™s not a bargain either. Adam Everett is a similar player and signed a 1 year, $1 million deal with the Tigers last winter. Wilsonâ€™s salary makes him a small asset, not a big one. Heâ€™s not the kind of player the Mariners should be giving up significant pieces to attain.

So, that leaves Snell as the main piece of value coming back. While Iâ€™m a fan, I also saw him as a buy-low opportunity, as he was done in Pittsburgh and everyone knew it. Heâ€™s not an ace – heâ€™s a guy with good stuff and average to below average command and some well documented issues with his prior organization. I donâ€™t like the word headcase, but when youâ€™re talking about a guy who would rather pitch in Triple-A than the majors, itâ€™s hard to argue with.

Snellâ€™s contract is better than Wilsonâ€™s, as he makes just $4.25 million next year and then has two club options for 2011 and 2012 that could be bargains if he rebounds to prior form. But thereâ€™s obviously the risk that he wonâ€™t, and then youâ€™re looking at getting one year of Snell and letting him leave. He may be a long term assetâ€¦ or he might be a one year flop.

For two guys with minimal value, the Mariners parted with five young players.

Clementâ€™s the big name of the bunch, as a LH DH/1B/C? with power who had no future with the Mariners. He can hit righties, but his ability to do anything else is questionable. His knee problems have kept him from catching, and the bat might not be good enough to make him more than a solid 1B/DH type, especially if he canâ€™t figure out LHPs.

Cedeno is a solid utility infielder who plays good defense at SS/2B, but canâ€™t hit. Heâ€™s a nice role player, but basically the definition of replacement level.

Itâ€™s the three pitchers that the team gave up that pushes the deal in Pittsburghâ€™s favor. Pribanic and Lorin were the teams 4th and 5th round picks in 2008, and both had impressed in their first year as professionals.

Pribanicâ€™s an extreme groundball guy who throws strikes but lacks an out-pitch, so he profiles as a #5 starter or a good reliever. If his breaking ball improves, he could beat that upside, though.

Lorinâ€™s a good command guy with a nice breaking ball and an average fastball, plus some projectability as a big guy (6â€²7/250) who hasnâ€™t had much experience on the mound. If he adds a couple of MPH to his fastball, he could be a mid-rotation starter.

Adcock had struggled of late with his command, but as a 21-year-old with a decent fastball-curveball combination and the ability to get groundballs, heâ€™s also an interesting arm. Getting him out of High Desert should give Pittsburgh a better idea of where he stands right now.

Theyâ€™re all just decent pitching prospects instead of good ones, so the Mâ€™s gave up quantity over quality, but the old cliche about building a rotation by getting a ton of arms and seeing who sticks is really true. The Mâ€™s had done a good job of collecting an inventory of decent arms, and they just depleted that fairly heavily, while also giving up a LH power bat, for two guys with marginal value.

Pittsburgh is the easy winner of this deal, as they get some interesting young talent and shed some salary without losing much that will hurt them. The Mariners could still salvage this by moving Wilson before Fridayâ€™s deadline for a younger SS with more long term potential, but if they stand pat with Wilson as the teamâ€™s shortstop for 2009 and maybe 2010, color me disappointed.

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Comments

97 Responses to “The Trade”

jbetzsold on
July 29th, 2009 12:22 pm

I’m curious what the Minor League Guru Jay thinks about this “time will tell” deal?

mrw88 on
July 29th, 2009 12:25 pm

Or maybe we will DFA Batista

Utah911 on
July 29th, 2009 12:25 pm

[Dave’s a pessimist, we’re all yes-men, if we were clever we’d work for teams, etc]

Marinerman1979 on
July 29th, 2009 12:27 pm

No way in heck did Pittsburgh win this deal. We gave up three low end pitchers, a dh/1b prototype that the FO doesn’t like, and a horrible hitting SS for a Mid rotation pitcher, and a great fielding, minimal bat Short Stop. Good deal for m’s.

That said…if the m’s don’t trade Washburn…

jld on
July 29th, 2009 12:32 pm

Word on the street is that Pittsburgh sent $3.3M at the Mariners too. Not sure if this balances things out or not.

just a fan on
July 29th, 2009 12:32 pm

I realize single A pitchers often burn out, which is why you need more of them to get one all the way to the majorsâ€¦ but thatâ€™s why you want to hang onto them, too.

A few days ago, I think I said that Alcides Escobar was replaceable as a prospect if the Brewers traded him. Now, maybe I was being overly hopeful in that specific case, and won’t belabor the point.

However, I think when you are looking at three pitchers in single-A — none of whom I’ve seen projected as an ace, but more described as back-of-the-rotation or relief pitchers — those types of players are replaceable. When was the earliest ETA on any of these pitchers we gave them? If it’s not until 2012 or 2013, then it doesn’t seem like a huge loss. (Plus, they are pre-Zduriencik picks, so he may have evaluated them differently)

If that’s the best deal we could get for Clement and 3 A-ball arms, then it’s a good deal to me. None of the four were playing in Seattle anytime soon.

Is anyone else starting to get the feeling that maybe Z overvalues defense? I love aquisitions of guys who are way undervalued because they have great gloves, but at some point, a team needs to score runs, too. Twenty-four one-run games in 2/3 of a season seems too much like living on the edge to me. A few of his aquisitions lately seem to give a little too much credit to defense. I can’t believe I’m saying this.

Big Bob on
July 29th, 2009 12:35 pm

Wlad to Cincy for a good AAA arm. Good move by Dr.Z to get something for Wlad!

vj on
July 29th, 2009 12:38 pm

It seems to me that this trade comes several weeks too late. If it had happened a month earlier, it might have made a difference for this season, now, it most likely won’t.

joser on
July 29th, 2009 12:39 pm

There’s still talent left (Hill, for example) but it certainly would be nice to get a few more pieces for the system as part of the other trades that are inevitably going to happen.

…and Balentien to the Reds for Robert Manuel, a 25 year old reliever who is basically everything the current bullpen isn’t: a right handed guy with control (or at least a good K/BB ratio)

Given that the Pirates sent a sizable amount of money our way in the deal makes it a little better…it’s still a big haul for two guys that aren’t sure things. At least Morrow is still around for another day or a better trade.

In other news, sources saying that Lee to Philly is essentially a done deal. That would shorten the list of suitors for Wash to the Yankees and Angels, right?

This ‘hold on until one of the big name guys goes’ strategy might backfire in a big way. The list of buyers for Wash is shrinking by the day, either because of how they’re doing on the field or the moves being made around us. I hope Z can salvage a trade for Wash to pick up some upside prospects.

P.S. the Wlad trade looks to be a good one…at least we know how to build a bullpen on the cheap.

StuckinProvo on
July 29th, 2009 12:42 pm

The Pirates are paying Seattle $3,308,702.19 as part of the Jack Wilson/Ian Snell trade.

It seems to me that this trade comes several weeks too late. If it had happened a month earlier, it might have made a difference for this season, now, it most likely wonâ€™t.

What makes you think this trade is about this season? They’re going to play again in ’10, too. Wilson has a team option next year for $8.4M (600K buyout); Snell is on a deal where he’s paid $4.25M in ’10, and then there are club options for ’11 ($6.75M) and ’12 ($9.25M)

Assuming Zduriencik isn’t just setting up to flip one or the other or both in a follow-on deal. (That’s how he got Cedeno, after all)

Based on UZR, we just got the best defensive shortstop in baseball. Imagine he and Beltre creating an impervious wall on the left side of the diamond. And he hits 250, so he is a marked improvement over Cedeno in batting average. For this we gave up Clement, who had no role here. I am just wondering what the heck Pittsburgh plans to do with Clement. Maybe they have another deal worked out with an American League team.

joser on
July 29th, 2009 12:47 pm

Of course, the M’s got players back in exchange for Yuniesky Betancourt, which no one was expecting. If you add those guys into this deal as part of the overall karmic balance, it’s not so bad.

Mariner Fan in CO Exile on
July 29th, 2009 12:54 pm

Iâ€™m sorry to rant on the site, and I know the rules and the rest of you cronies can go and tattle on me and kiss Cameronâ€™s ass

You should have put that up front so I could have stopped reading before I wasted 1 and a half minutes of my life.

I think, with cash considerations, this deal is not as bad as I first thought. The defensive potential of our infield gets me pretty excited. Snell is a risk, and I can’t help but feel the quantity of names makes it seem lopsided, but, in the end, if we aren’t paying much for the risks in contract terms this year, I feel ok about this. Not jazzed, but ok. I at least don’t get the same feelings I did when Bavasi got fleeced. There is an argument that the Pirates didn’t get the better of us, at least. The Wlad trade, I am not so sure.

I wonder, too, if Z is also doing right by some guys who they’ve determined have no real future with the club. It’s not the basis for the moves, but I bet Clement gets a better shot in Pitt than he’d get here. Wlad may not have been the direction the team wanted to go either. They got a return and helped move a guy to greener pastures, perhaps. I at least am going to pretend that’s part of it for the warm and fuzzy effect.

Dicky Amaral on
July 29th, 2009 12:54 pm

What continues to become more and more apparent is that not only did the Bavasi era mess up the organization with trades and free agent signings, but they were clueless with the draft. Besides wasting first round picks on bullpen arms, we just dealt two of Bavasi’s fifth round picks, a third round pick, and the third pick of the first round for an above average defensive SS and, hopefully, #3 or #4 starter.

That being said, I like the deal. Z has to try and get some value out of the mess that Bavasi left.

joser on
July 29th, 2009 12:55 pm

Imagine he and Beltre creating an impervious wall on the left side of the diamond.

For what, a month? Maybe a little more, if Mr Medical Miracle really can come back in a couple of weeks. It will be pretty to watch in September, though. But 3B certainly is a looming problem for the offseason. Beltre might take a short “prove it” deal, but he’ll get better offers in the offseason.

I am just wondering what the heck Pittsburgh plans to do with Clement. Maybe they have another deal worked out with an American League team.

Yeah, I’ve been wondering that too. But they just gave LaRoache up to Boston, so they need a 1B with some pop. I suspect that’s the plan (with maybe some spot catching as a backup if his knees ever allow it).

jordan on
July 29th, 2009 12:59 pm

Hmmm.. what do you think the chances of us flipping Wilson are, Dave?

Really, I am sort of upset about this deal. Mainly just because we bought, and I don’t like the fact that we got a 32 year old shortstop. If we can flip him with Washburn to someone for a nice young SS, then I won’t mind it at all.

joser on
July 29th, 2009 1:03 pm

Wlad may not have been the direction the team wanted to go either.

Wlad was already DFA’d, and prior to that he had almost vanished on the bench because Wak didn’t want to play him. He still can’t hit breaking stuff, and his swing isn’t suited for Safeco. There’s no “may” about it — he had no future in Seattle, and the only question was when, not if.

Great American Ballpark is a hitter’s park, and is much better suited to a RH pull hitter like Wlad than Safeco. He may thrive there in ways he never would in Seattle. I’m impressed that Zduriencik got anything for him, really, since a team could gamble that if they waited they could get him for nothing. A decent bullpen arm in return is a good deal (and if Wlad does thrive in Cincinnati, it’s a win-win for everybody).

mymrbig on
July 29th, 2009 1:11 pm

Rick L said:

Based on UZR … [a]nd he hits 250

Way to include one of the more valuable new statistics (UZR) with one of the less valuable old statistics (AVG) in the same paragraph. Its like screaming “I’m awesome and I understand the new stats … but not so much.”

I’m just teasing, but it was still funny to see you cite UZR and batting average.

Wilson is basically Adam Everett lite with the glove, while Everett is Jack Wilson lite with the bat. Both are around league average overall.

I think Dave is a little too hard and this is a wash. Espeically when you factor in the $3.3 million coming to Seattle (straight into Ackley’s wallet). Too many unknowns to judge the trade today. It could be a huge win for the M’s if Snell is a #3 for the rest of his deal and Wilson provides his usual good defense. It could be a huge win for the Pirates if Clement stays healthy and finds a defensive home and/or one of the A-ball arms develops and raises his ceiling. But for today, it is about even.

In addition to the cash sent over as part of the deal, how much additional ticket revenue over the course of the summer does the club make selling this as a “buy” trade vs. a “sell” trade?

It seems to me that Z did a good job of 1. improving the team’s chances next year, 2. not hurting public perception/ticket revenue this year, & 3. not overpay (when one considers the cash given up by Pittsburgh).

I don’t know, you guys tell me: How much does the storyline “we’re giving up on this year” depress ticket sales over the rest of the season?

vj on
July 29th, 2009 1:13 pm

What makes you think this trade is about this season?

At this time, it probably isn’t. But if they had done it earlier, they might still be in the race. It seems to me that all of the involved players have been mentioned in trade speculation for weeks so waiting until now might’ve been an opportunity missed. Oh well, that’s water down the bridge now.

tmac9311 on
July 29th, 2009 1:26 pm

I think what kills this deal for me is i saw Brignac and Kazmir, and got Snell Wilson instead, and seeing the numbers 5 for 2 always makes you wonder first. All that said it’s not a bad deal, Wash and probably Lowe will be traded by the 31st, and Wilson may be used in the deal, and Snell replaces Wash/Erik. I’d still love to get Kaz and Brignac, although Wilson would need to be shipped to a third team and not so sure Z wants to spend money on two risk/reward pitchers.

This deal just yells “Win Now” even though we clearly are out of it this year, i suppose Wilson/Snell are pretty much Free Trials for 2010 though, and we dealt unwanted pieces so all and all it’s not that bad.

Nacre on
July 29th, 2009 1:46 pm

The problem I have with this deal is not overpaying, but rather the fact that even with Snell and Wilson we obviously aren’t beating the Angels or winning the wildcard. This is a repeat of the foolish Maggette for Ewing trade the Sonics once made.

Everyone knows they are out of the race, and with Washburn signing a big contract this offseason (and thus no longer needing to play well for a payoff) I don’t see them pitching nearly as well next year.

joser on
July 29th, 2009 2:06 pm

But if they had done it earlier, they might still be in the race. It seems to me that all of the involved players have been mentioned in trade speculation for weeks so waiting until now mightâ€™ve been an opportunity missed.

The Pirates didn’t have a hole at first (and thus a use for Clement) until they traded LaRoache to Boston less than a week ago. Presumably there was no fit before that.

I don’t think anybody expected the M’s to get swept by the Indians. And if you know of a way Zduriencik could’ve made a trade that stopped the Angels from winning, I’d love to hear about it.

I’m sure if a trade had been there to be made that would’ve improved the team a couple of weeks ago, they would’ve made it. I’m sure the Phillies would’ve liked to have gotten Cliff Lee a start or two ago, too.

Wow.
For once, I’m in complete agreement with Dave.
“For two guys with minimal value, the Mariners parted with five young players.” Yep. There’s nothing wrong with getting Snell, and a Snell for Clement both-of-you-need-a-change type deal would’ve been great. Wlad+Clement, whatever. But we get a short-to-medium term upgrade at SS and get to take a flyer on a headcase (a talented one), in exchange for a lot of A-ball pitching depth. Oh, and we get to pay more money for the privilege. Yes, yes, Pittsburgh’s picking up the ’09 money, but we’ll still owe Snell and may need to buy out Wilson. I… I can’t shake the fact that this makes much more sense if you thought you could compete RIGHT NOW.

Let’s be clear, though; this isn’t a disastrous trade. Yes, it’s an overpay, but not a huge one, and Clement’s potential trade value had to be diminished somewhat by this last year or so. Cedeno’s value wasn’t so hot, either.

Losing the low-minors pitching depth is unfortunate, yes, but smart drafting or another trade can fix that up pretty quickly.

This is a trade that makes the team better right now, unlike most of Bavasi’s work. All told, I am reasonably happy, and will be happier if we move Washburn to get something moderately shiny.

bseblfevr on
July 29th, 2009 2:37 pm

If Balentien and Clement were that good, why aren’t they with the M’s who have a poor offense and average defense?? The three arms are guys we have not heard of….so, we get a very good defensive SS with a .270 career average is 31 and he is free for the rest of the season with an option for next. Snell fell out of favor with the Pirates, but looks to sucked it up and put up some good number s the past two months…he is a risk ans has some guaranteed money but worth the risk. Cedeno is a minor league SS who brings nothing to this ea. The pitcher from the Reds has a nice background and can be an arm in the pen while Balentien has plenty of chances and showd very little….good risk moves Jack.

I like this trade a lot. I understand the “stock-pile arms” mentality to building a rotation, but lets not forget we still have some chips that we can use to get those type of arms back. Also, because of Safeco Field, FA pitchers are easier to recruit than hitters.

rcc on
July 29th, 2009 2:54 pm

When I heard Snell….I first thought of Chris Snelling aka Doyle. Doyle was released by Pittsburg Triple A team earlier this month. WTF, isn’t Snelling just as good as Langerhaus?

Alex on
July 29th, 2009 2:56 pm

I went to sleep last night hoping to wake up and find that we had Brignac, so this is just disappointing. Seems like an overpay based on how many pitching prospects we gave up, but not too bad. I was hoping for something in our favor given Zduriencik’s track record, but at least we still have the Washburn trade to come (assuming it will occur at some point)

tmac9311 on
July 29th, 2009 3:04 pm

i suppose we did overpay, but trading Wash/Lowe/LaHair etc. etc. will quickly restock those farm arms. We weren’t suppose to get anything for Washburn at the begining of the year, turning him into Snell and Wilson while flipping a couple low level arms we will get for Washburn sounds good to me. This trade by itself isn’t a win, but Washburn with trade value is a bonus none of us were suppose to get, so if you look at it that way we still end up winning at the end of the day, (or at least by the deadline).

Just please Z, don’t listen to any of the idiots on ESPn that think we should resign Wash.

Wolfman on
July 29th, 2009 3:08 pm

Rumors at ESPN says the Twins are interested in Sean White. I wonder what JZ could get for him and if, perhaps, Manuel was brought aboard as a possible replacement? We’ll see. Baseballcube.com has Manuel’s rating for control at 100, K Rate at 84, and efficiency at 99. Wlad was not going to play here anymore. I really like this trade.

Jack has shown a great penchant for picking up pitching talent, ala Olsen, Aardmsa, the two prospects for Betancourt, etc. I don’t think he’s as concerned about replacing the pitchers sent out in this deal as he was landing a good SP and a great defensive SS. I know BA is blasphemy around here but Wilson is batting .267 compared to Cedeno’s pathetic .170. Isn’t Cedeno addition by subtraction? Am I off-base? And as good as Cedeno’s defense has been, Wilson’s is purely outstanding.

LaHair has no trade value, every team has their own version of him. But, I guess people have to have a new player to irrationally overvalue now that Morse and Wlad are gone.

I still think it’s very likely that we’ll see Washburn go away in the next few days.

big hawna on
July 29th, 2009 3:17 pm

Can’t believe anyone who follows baseball (the game not the blogs) thinks this is a bad trade.

Have you guys seen Jack Wilson play?

What a fantastic trade. DC is way off the mark, according to Dave, we lost a guy who may, MAY be a 5 starter, a tall guy, and an an “interesting” arm???

For the best infielder in baseball and Ian Snell, who is the ultimate change of scenery guy. Ian Snell does not have an “interesting” arm, he has a major league, top of the rotation arm… and off field problems, ever hear of a guy called Zach Grienke? Same story….

Last week I got ripped here for saying I reserve judgement on Jack Z., but this is a steal for the Ms. Count me in on the Jack Z bandwagon!!!

The hit rate for low minors arms is very very low, if Pribanic and Adcock are wining games for the Bucs in two years, great, but thats a crap shoot.

Big Bob on
July 29th, 2009 3:18 pm

Ugh damn that wasn’t a pretty start to the 7th….

SonOfZavaras on
July 29th, 2009 4:43 pm

I like this trade with the Pirates, but with a considerable reservation.

The key to this deal on our side is Ian Snell. If he pitches up to the quality of his stuff, I’d say he can be a legitimate #3 or #4 starter…in other words, a potential first-rate stabilizer of the rotation’s back-end. I love the fact he’s 27, and under club control for years.

But I worry about a guy who made it very clear that he’d given up on his major-league club, had no interest in playing for them.

You can’t do that without quitting on your teammates, too.

And as a side-question, how does Jack Wilson feel about playing with this guy now?

Say what you will about Wilson’s well-documented flaws offensively, but the guy will get his shirt dirty and dirtier for you as a teammate.

I don’t know what Snell’s beef with Pittsburgh was (although it must be said the general atmosphere there probably lent to a number of grievances), but it seemed his exile in Indy was a largely self-imposed one.

What kind of teammate are the M’s getting who takes his ball and goes home when things with the club aren’t going his way?

If we struggle the rest of this year and much of 2010…does Ian Snell quit on us, too?

Pittsburgh is still the major leagues, I have to wonder about a player who openly says he wants to remain in AAA rather than do what he can to help his admittedly bad major-league team out.

Jack Wilson, we know what we’re getting with him.
And I figure he’s got to be the happiest guy involved in this trade.

I personally like the idea of him getting flipped for a younger, cheaper guy in another trade…but the bottom line is that we’ve made an upgrade at shortstop, no matter what- that everybody in the whole free world knew we needed.

As for what we gave up? To borrow someone’s catch-word: Meh. I think the price tag may not be quite so high as what some may think.

Clement’s lack of future with us was as much a non-secret as Snell’s lack of future with the Buccos. In order to make room for the shot you want to give Adam Moore, Clement had to go.

I think Cedeno’s a born reserve middle-infielder with an oh-so-light stick and a good attitude. As for Lorin, he’s the piece I’ll miss the most- and the piece I predict we’ll miss the most.

But I had no more than “wait and see if he does something” feelings about both Pribanic and Adcock.

As for the depletion of arms to watch in A-ball, there are plenty of 2009 draftees that will get ample opportunity to fill those slots.

And still in A-ball are JC Ramirez and Michael Pineda. Both of whom probably have better ceilings than Adcock and Pribanic. Add in the likes of Maikel Cleto (not sure where he is, I’d have to look up his MiLB page)and I’d say the system isn’t completely stripped.

Annnnnnnnnnnnd you still have a chance to replenish the arms you lost (to some degree) by trading Jarrod Washburn, Russ Branyan, David Aardsma.

Bottom line to me: if Snell becomes the mid-rotation starter I believe he can be, then we win this trade.

If not, then it’s basically a wash of some parts we had to part with, anyway.

Breadbaker on
July 29th, 2009 5:20 pm

I love how the M’s are getting exactly $3,308,702.19. I want to make sure they count those nineteen cents.

bhamhusky on
July 29th, 2009 6:06 pm

I am sure Zman checked out those 3 minor league pitchers and has decided they have mediocre futures. In Jack I trust.

jro on
July 29th, 2009 9:32 pm

Ok, sometimes I disagree with Dave’s assessment on things, but at least he forms arguments with some level of rationality.

Then I stumble onto this article. Hoo boy, how on earth does this guy have privileges to author blog posts?

Dave, an open request — please light this guy up like a christmas tree.

SonOfZavaras on
July 29th, 2009 11:27 pm

I second that open request on lighting up that guy. What a smug, assuming little twit.

His last name isn’t in my good graces, either.

jwgrandsalami on
July 30th, 2009 2:30 am

While I was at first a bit shocked that the M’s gave up three pitching prospects, I think part of the reasoning may be that the team only has so many 40-man spots and somewhere down the line they may not be able to control all these players.

Since Lorin, Adcock and Pribanic were all 3 or 4 years away it seems, that would put them roughly on track to need to be added to the 40-man roster around the same time (or within a year of) the time that players from this year’s draft would need to be added.

Typically a team doesn’t add much more than 6 or 7 guys in any one season (and it’s usually less). Just another reason why Jack Z might have willing to overpay (in addition to having the Pirates pay everything but the minimum on Snell and Wilson for ’09).

rsrobinson on
July 30th, 2009 4:45 am

I think Z has confidence in his ability to replenish the M’s minor league pitching depth, especially when you’re talking about three guys from the low minors who weren’t considered top prospects. Snell is a risk but one worth taking, IMO, and once Beltre returns the left-side of the M’s infield defense will match the OF defense. If they can get Beltre re-signed for next year that will be fun to watch in 2010.

Wolfman on
July 30th, 2009 9:36 am

I second that open request on lighting up that guy. What a smug, assuming little twit.

Did you guys read the comments after that article? Oh, he got lit up…royally!!

Aren’t we also forgetting the other pitcher we got in the Betancourt trade, Derrick Saito? Sounds like he has promise as well. Z has restocked the system pretty well, actually…and with better arms it would seem.